Place the powdered sugar and almond meal in a food processor and give them a good spin until combined. Add in the gel food color and pulse until you reach a pink color you’re satisfied with. I used about 3-4 drops, but remember, the color intensifies when folded with the egg whites, so what looks too light, might be perfect. Let the tant pour tant dry overnight, or spread on a cookie sheet and let dry in a turned off oven for a few hours.

In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites to a foam, gradually add the sugar until you obtain a glossy meringue. Beat in the vanilla bean scrapings. Do not over beat your meringue or it will be too dry.

Add the tant pour tant (almond meal - powdered sugar amalgamation) to the beaten egg whites and sugar. Give it a quick fold to break some of the air and then fold the mass carefully until you obtain a batter that falls back on itself after counting to 10. Give quick strokes at first to break the mass and slow down. The whole process should not take more than 50 strokes. Test a small amount on a plate: if the tops flattens on its own, it's perfect and ready to pipe. If there is a small beak, give the batter a couple more folds until you obtain a batter that falls back on itself after counting to 10.

Fill a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip (Ateco #807 or #809) with the batter and pipe small rounds (1.5 inches in diameter) onto parchment paper or silicone mats lined baking sheets.

Preheat the oven to 300F. Let the macarons sit out for 30 minutes to an hour to harden their shells a bit and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, depending on their size. Let cool. If you have trouble removing the shells, pour a couple of drops of water under the parchment paper while the sheet is still a bit warm and the macarons will lift up more easily do to the moisture. Don’t let them sit there it too long or they will become soggy. Once baked and if you are not using them right away, store them in an airtight container out of the fridge for a couple of days or in the freezer. To fill: pipe or spoon about 1 tablespoon of filling in the center of one shell and top with another one.

Make the Goji Berry Filling

Strain goji berries, saving the water, and place in a food processor or blender with the orange zest and ginger. I used the mini processor for this.

Process or blend until you have a paste like consistency. Drizzle in some of the soaking water if it's too thick.

Stir goji berry paste into either 1 cup white buttercream, or 1 cup soft white chocolate ganache (let set in fridge until spreadable), or 1 cup sweetened, whipped cream cheese. Stir in some pink gel food color, if desired, since the goji berry filling doesn't turn out that pink. If you use dried cherries or cranberries, it will turn out pink, so no need for pink gel color.

Pipe or spoon any of the above onto one macaron shell, then sandwich with a second macaron shell. Enjoy!